These results suggest that in the course of treatment, HNSCC cells in vitro would progress from a state where most pathways are in a homeostatic state due to the presence of EGFR activity (here, represented by the untreated cells) and would progress to a state with upregulation of different mRNAs in order to activate alternative pathways to overcome EGFR inhibition (represented by the cetuximab-treated cells). The gene discussed is EGFR; the disease is head and neck squamous cell carcinoma.